Gunpowder and Lead
by Fyrloche
Summary: Faith deals with an abusive boyfriend.


-1

Gunpowder and Lead

**A\N: Heard this song and loved it. Had a sudden plot bunny thought and here we are. Enjoy. I don't own Buffy or the song 'Gunpowder and Lead'.**

_County road 233, under my feet  
Nothin' on this white rock but little ole me  
I've got two miles till, he makes bail  
And if I'm right we're headed straight for hell_

The apartment was dark as the door opened. A figure entered, not bothering with the light as it made it's way through the familiar surroundings to the kitchen. A cabinet door opened and the figure reached in to pull out a bottle of Jack Daniel's. A quick twist broke the seal and then the sound of gulping could be heard as the harsh liquid was swallowed. Next, a drawer was pulled open and the sounds of rummaging could be heard. The sudden flare of a match lit the kitchen and the figure saw her reflection in the polished stainless steel of the refrigerator. Faith looked at the black eye that her reflection sported and let the rage flow as she lit her cigarette.

_I'm goin' home, gonna load my shotgun  
Wait by the door and light a cigarette  
He wants a fight well now he's got one  
And he ain't seen me crazy yet  
Slapped my face and he shook me like a rag doll  
Don't that sound like a real man  
I'm going to show him what a little girls made of  
Gunpowder and lead_

'How could I have been fooled so completely?!' she thought to herself as she turned from her reflection and went to her bedroom. She was angry with herself for what Robin had done, and she had not seen it coming. They had argued, but they had argued before. This time was different. From the first, she could tell that there was an undercurrent that hadn't been there before. It was like he had an edge and he knew it. It wasn't until he backhanded her and she wasn't able to block it that she realized that something was very wrong.

_flashback_

She was on the ground, and he stood over her and gloated. "Stupid bitch." He grabbed her by the hair and picked her up. He smiled and drew his hand back for another blow. "Did you think that I wouldn't bring you down to my level before I did this?" He knocked her down again. "I found the old council's formula for the potion that takes away a Slayer's skills." He grabbed her and began to pick her up again when providence interceded.

"Freeze!" Robin froze. "Let the woman go and back away!"

"You don't know who you're messing with, officer." Robin turned slowly with his hands up to face the policeman.

"Like I haven't heard that one before. Now while you've got me shaking in my shoes, why don't you get face down on the ground before I get real scared and accidentally shoot you." He gestured with his gun. "Move it, asshole!" He stepped up and got between Robin and Faith. Without taking his eyes or gun off Robin as he got on the ground, he asked Faith a question. "You okay, miss?"

Faith turned her head and spat out the blood that had collected there. "Yeah, five-oh. Thanks for the assist."

The cop leaned in over Robin and took out his handcuffs. He put a knee in the prone man's back and cuffed him. He paused and looked over at Faith for the first time. "All part of the job, ma'am. It's always a pleasure to take down someone like this creep." He stood and pulled Robin to his feet.

"You'll regret interfering, officer." Robin's voice was altogether too calm.

"Maybe later, buddy. But, right now, I feel pretty damn good about it." The cop paused and seemed to collect himself. "I'm placing you under arrest for assault. You have the right to remain silent." Before he could continue, Robin interrupted him.

"Yes, I know, I know. Let's get to the station so that I can call my attorney." He smirked at the cop. "Then you'll see how good you'll feel."

The cop smiled back at Robin. "Do you see the concern in my eyes? I don't care who you know, even if it's the President. You broke the law, and whoever you know doesn't put you above the law." He looked at Faith and gave her an encouraging smile. "You ready to press charges, ma'am?"

She drew a ragged breath. "Can I come by in the morning?" she asked, ignoring Robin's glare.

"Are you sure you want to wait that long?" The cop suddenly had a sense of foreboding. He was beginning to fear that this young woman was going to back out and let this thug beat on her some more.

Faith could almost read this good cop's thoughts from the look on his face. She grinned at him. "Don't worry, five-oh. He ain't goin' to get away with this. That was his first and last time to lay a hand on me."

The cop grinned back in relief. He could see the fire in this one, the kind of fire that didn't let something like this go on. "Good girl. Now, what's your name for the report and so that the precinct will know who to look for in the morning."

"It's Faith, Faith Lehane." She turned her back to walk away.

"Do you need medical attention, Faith? Or someone to take you home?"

"Nah, I'm good." She gave the cop a parting smile. "Thanks for the save."

"My pleasure." The cop turned his attention back to Robin, who was doing a slow boil. "Time to set you up for the rest of the night."

Robin gave the cop a look of pure disgust. "I'll be out by ten."

The cop gave him a not so gentle shove forward. "Maybe so, dirt bag, but that will still give your lady friend time to get out." He looked back at the retreating back of the woman named Faith. "I hope she takes it."

Robin snorted. "For her sake, she better not."

_It's half past ten, another six pack in  
And I can feel the rumble like a cold black wind  
He pulls in the drive, the gravel flies  
He don't know what's waiting here this time_

Faith went to her closet and pulled out a suitcase. She packed quickly and efficiently, taking only what she needed. She went back to the closet, reached to the top to get her stash of cash. It was a habit from her childhood that she had never got out of. As she felt around, her hand brushed against a box that she had forgotten that she had. Taking it down, she remembered when Xander gave it to her before he left for Africa. She opened it and looked down at the double barreled shotgun pistol that was nestled in red felt. At the time, she had been almost offended that he would give her a gun until he explained to her that there might be a time when her slayer strength wouldn't be enough. At times like this, she wondered if he was psychic. She lifted the pistol from it's case and snapped it open, listening to the click as the chambers came into view. She pulled two shells from the sockets that were in the felt and deftly loaded the chambers, closing the action with a practiced snap. She smirked, briefly, as she thought how the gang would react if they knew that she knew how to use a shotgun. She could thank one of her mom's boyfriends for that. He had been a soldier, a good ole' country boy that her mom had hooked up with. They had even gotten married. He had wanted to adopt her so he had treated her like she was his own kid. He had even taken her hunting and had shown her how to shoot. His philosophy was that girls needed to know how to shoot as well as boys, maybe even more so. Too bad he had been killed in a copter crash. That was the beginning of her mom's descent into hell, taking her daughter along for the ride.

Faith's trip down memory lane was halted by the sound of a key in the lock. She stepped into the hallway outside the bedroom door and watched as the main door to the apartment swung open to reveal Robin. She saw him reach for the light switch but his hand stopped when he heard the distinctive sound of the twin hammers on the shotgun being cocked.

_I'm goin' home, gonna load my shotgun  
Wait by the door and light a cigarette  
He wants a fight well now he's got one  
And he ain't seen me crazy yet  
Slapped my face and he shook me like a rag doll  
Don't that sound like a real man  
I'm going to show him what a little girls made of  
Gunpowder and lead_

Faith watched Robin freeze with no emotion showing on her face. "Close the door; step in; and sit down." she ordered. She kept a close eye on him, almost hoping he would try something. After he sat down she stepped out of the hallway. "Keep your hands up where I can see them."

Robin looked at her figure in the gloom. He could make out the shotgun pointed at him. "Where in the hell did you get that?"

She gestured with the shotgun. "This little thing? A gift from a friend." Her eyes got hard. "Why'd you do it, Rob? I thought we had a good thing goin'."

Robin shrugged. "I actually didn't mean to hit you, but I got caught up in the moment. And then the rush was just too much."

"You bastard! You felt good about hitting me?"

Robin smirked. "Sick, isn't it? But then the corruption that comes from power could be called a sickness, couldn't it? And my power has grown great. I own the council since Giles had his stroke. The Slayers and the Watchers all are under my control now."

"Not Buffy; not me; and not Xander." Faith protested.

"Buffy is too busy taking care of Giles to even notice what is going on around her. Willow and Dawn are taking care of Buffy. I've neutralized your powers." He barked out a laugh. "And I just got word today that Harris has been eliminated."

Faith almost dropped her gun. "What?" she whispered.

Robin smiled. "That fool is finally out of my way. You know, I've hated that bastard for years. He inspires so much loyalty in the Slayers that he finds and trains that they could be a part of a group separate from the council." He grimaced. "I couldn't have that. So, I convinced the council that he was turning into another Gwendolyn Post and had them send a wet works team to eliminate him." He chuckled. "I got word today that they had succeeded."

Faith started swearing, slowly and vehemently. She looked down the barrel of her shotgun. "I outta kill you right now. How does that fit in with your little power trip?"

"You're not going to kill me, baby. You still love me." He leaned towards her. "You know you liked it earlier. You always get turned on when you get beat up."

Faith looked at him in disgust. "No," she corrected, "I got turned on by the slaying." A thought crossed her mind. "That team that got X, did they bury him? Did they send you a picture of his body?"

"No. They made it look like an accident. A car going off a mountain road doesn't leave much of a body." Robin frowned, as a sudden thought came to him.

The same thought came to Faith. "Then you don't know for sure if he's dead, do you?" She smiled. "If anyone can survive something like that, it's Xan." Her smile turned malicious. "You are in a real mess, you know that? If he's alive, you're a dead man and if he's dead, you're a dead man."

"If he's alive, there are other teams. They'll get him eventually. If he's dead…" he smirked at her, "who's going to kill me? You? You're still on your redemption kick so you're not going to kill me. You're the only one who knows about this who would do anything about it. You can't contact Buffy or his other friends because they went to a safe house to care for Giles since he has too many enemies to go to a regular hospital for very long." Robin looked at her conspiratorially. "That was a smart maneuver on my part. I knew what was coming and I needed to clear the playing field of any potential obstacles."

"You won't be able to keep B or Red in the dark forever. Your ass is grass when they find out that you did in X." Faith was thinking furiously. She knew that the only real sticking point in this was her. He had to get her to his side or eliminate her. She knew which one he was going to have to go for.

"By the time they find out that Harris is dead, I'll have covered my tracks well enough that they will never figure it out."

"That includes covering me, doesn't it?"

"That's up to you, babe." Robin looked at her intently. "Put the gun down and come over here. I want to apologize for earlier." He smiled at her winningly. "I want you by my side. The main reason I gave you that potion was so that I could tell you everything without you flying of the handle. I've trusted you with all this because I know that you can be trusted. I need you." He started to lower his hands and reach for her.

The sound of the shotgun blast was loud in the apartment.

_His fist is big but my gun's bigger  
He'll find out when I pull the trigger_

Robin screamed as the buckshot took off his right hand. Faith watched dispassionately as he gripped the stump where his hand used to be. "You were right. You're not worth losing my redemption over." She leaned in and put the muzzle of the gun under his chin and forced him to look at her. "But you'll never hit me with that hand again." She removed the muzzle and grabbed her bag with her free hand and started out the door.

"You're dead, you bitch!" Robin screamed at her. Whatever else he was going to say was wiped out by a backhanded blow from the barrels of the pistol. He slumped to the floor with a shattered jaw.

Faith looked down at the unconscious man and spat on him. She heard the sirens in the distance and knew that it was time to hightail it out of there. She knew a pilot that would get her out of the country and she had places to be. "Damn it, Boytoy, you better still be alive." she muttered to herself as she ran into the night.

_I'm goin' home, gonna load my shotgun  
Wait by the door and light a cigarette  
He wants a fight well now he's got one  
And he ain't seen me crazy yet  
Slapped my face and he shook me like a rag doll  
Don't that sound like a real man  
I'm going to show him what a little girls made of  
Gunpowder and lead_

_Epilogue, two weeks later_

Robin sat in his hospital room, nursing his arm, his jaw, and his hate. He looked up at the man who entered the room.

"Director Wood, we still have not found any trace of the rogue Slayer, Faith. She has vanished. We have also been unable to find any trace of the rogue Watcher, Harris." The man paused a moment. "We did, however, receive this letter addressed to you." He handed over a large manila envelope. "It is from Harris."

Robin looked at the man with a question in his eyes.

"We have examined the envelope thoroughly, using x-ray and magic. It is safe to open." The man paused and then backed out of the room. "I'll leave now so that you may have some privacy."

After the man had shut the door behind him, Robin opened the sealed envelope and pulled out a single sheet of paper. In the middle of the page was a simple, five word statement written in black magic marker. "Your men missed. I won't." Robin stared at the words for a few moments, then he laid the sheet on his lap and leaned back in the bed, contemplating his next move. The bullet that entered his temple wiped out all thought as it blew out the side of his head.

Xander Harris calmly lifted his head from the telescopic sight on the sniper rifle. He looked over at Faith and smiled as he got up from his prone position. "Let's get outta here." he said, as he held out his hand for her to take. It was time to go find Buffy and the others and take back the council.

_  
_**A\N: I hope you liked this. sighs Yes, I know. I have to get a chapter out for 'A Knight's Companion'. It's coming along. And for those who like my Inuyasha work, I'm working on the last chapter of 'Cat-a-lyst' and the next chapter of 'Reunion'. For my TTH readers, these stories are on . 'Companion' is a Xander centered story that I can't post on TTH because it crosses with Mercedes Lackey's work.**


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